The Thrill of the Chase
by ifonly13
Summary: Sometimes the best things come from a bout of spontaneity.
1. Chapter 1

_**The Thrill of the Chase**_

* * *

It's the middle of the night when the call comes in. She misses it the first time because Castle had woken her up with a trail of hot kisses against her shoulder. He doesn't let her shove him off her to get the phone, mumbling that it can wait just ten minutes as he bracelets her wrists to push her back into the pillow, stopping her protest with a heated kiss.

When he lets her answer Esposito's second call, Castle is still draped over her back, fingers tripping over her side and making her squirm as the other detective gives her the address.

"Need to go," she says once she hangs up the phone, tossing it onto the bedside table. It nearly falls onto the ground, teetering on the edge. "Double homicide on the Upper West Side."

"Stay here," he murmurs against her shoulder blade.

Kate pushes at his face. "Can't." She slips out of the bed, grabbing up one of the throw blankets to wrap around her body because if he glimpses the curve of her back or the lines of her legs, she'll be pulled back into bed. "You going to come along?"

He mumbles something into the pillow.

"Okay then." Hitching the blanket up around her torso, Kate searches the drawers for underwear. "Go back to sleep, lazy."

She gets dressed in the bathroom so that he can stay in the dark. Her hair gets brushed, pulled back into a mess of a bun before she finds a pair of heels in the closet. Castle is watching her from one eye, the other buried into the pillows, as she leans on the bed to slip the shoes on. Kate tosses the blanket onto his bare ass.

"I'll be back when I can," Kate whispers against his cheek before giving him a soft kiss on the corner of his mouth. "Behave."

"Stay safe."

"Do my best."

* * *

She pushes the quiet softness from that morning to the back as she closes the car door behind her. The lights from the cruisers color her khaki trench coat with splashes of blue and red.

"Glad you finally made it, Beckett," says Ryan as he meets her at the perimeter.

Esposito lifts up the yellow tape to let her duck underneath. "Yeah. 'Bout time. Gonna have to talk to your man about punctuality."

Her glare tells them both to shut up. They were insufferable when they first found out, the teasing dying down until she was suspiciously late to the precinct or the scene one day. Then the jabs started up again. If it wasn't so early and she had a cup of coffee, she'd have a comeback but her brain is barely functioning as it is. So she keeps quiet, clenching her teeth, as they climb the stairs.

The apartment they head up to is crowded with crime scene techs and a few uniforms all milling around. It's small, all of four rooms. Most of the activity centers in the open space decorated as a living room, the kitchen across from it.

"Victims are Bradley and Julie Martin. Both were shot in what looks like a break-in. Perps took some of their valuables. The laptop, her wedding band, his watch. Little things they could carry without looking out of place." Ryan is consulting his notebook as they walk through the rooms, weaving between other officers.

There are sheets over the bodies in the living room but she still looks elsewhere. "Do they have security cameras in the building? I didn't see any in the lobby."

"Yeah, we have a group of uniforms on it," says Esposito. "But there's something else you should know."

When Kate turns, brow raised, the boys nod back toward a woman in the kitchen. She has an identification card around her neck on a lanyard as she leans on the counter. But the woman isn't the one who catches her eye.

It's the infant in her arms.

The boy has his hands tangled up in the woman's shirt, babbling just loud enough to be heard over the talk of the cops. He's got a dark green sweater on, a pair of jeans, and is missing his shoes.

"Who's that?" Kate asks, eyes still stuck on the boy.

"Their son, Chase." Esposito shakes his head, running a hand over his hair. "He was in his room when it happened, fast asleep. The perps must have left him be or just not seen him."

"Child Services is going to take care of him while they search for a foster family for the boy," says Ryan. "Shouldn't be too hard to find a family for a kid that youn -"

Kate doesn't think. "I'll take him."

Both of them turn to face her, mouths open. She's fairly certain she'd be looking at herself that way if it were possible.

"What?"

She shrugs toward Esposito. "I'll take him until they find a family. I mean, the loft is big enough and Castle's done the baby thing before. The places they normally put kids before finding foster families aren't fantastic so…"

Ignoring their stares, she steps away from them toward the kitchen. The woman pushes up off the counter, bouncing the boy. "Can I help you?" she asks.

"Detective Beckett," Kate introduces, taking a space next to the Child Services woman.

"Emily DeWitt, Child Services." The woman shifts so that she can shake Kate's hand. "You the lead detective on the case?"

"Yeah. And I was wondering… Have you found a home for Chase yet?"

"Not yet. It's hard with someone so little. Not too many families are prepared on such short notice." Emily taps Chase on the nose making the boy crinkle his face up. "It might be a while until he's got a good home."

"That's the thing, actually." Kate glances at Ryan and Esposito. They're avoiding her eyes though she's not sure why. "I have a pretty big place and could hold onto him for a few days."

Emily bites on her lip, obviously not sure with the arrangement.

"I'm a cop, Ms. DeWitt. The apartment will be completely safe and…"

"Do you live with someone? Another cop, perhaps? One of them?" She's pointing toward the boys.

Kate laughs, hiding her mouth against the back of her hand. "Not quite." Emily has her brow raised, waiting for a real answer. "I live with Richard Castle."

"Richard Castle? The novelist Richard Castle?" the woman half-chokes out.

Kate just blinks as Emily tries to pull herself together.

"Wait. You're serious?" She coughs, clearing her throat. "Seriously? You're Nikki Heat?"

"No," Kate states seriously. "I'm not. But I do live with Castle and I'm sure he'd be just as open to undergoing a background check so we can take Chase in for a while."

Emily gets her phone out, starts tapping out a number. "Let me check with my supervisor." She steps away but Chase watches Kate from over the other woman's shoulder, brown eyes wide but with a sneaking little smile visible on his face.

"Hey, Beckett?" Ryan calls from the living room area. "You coming to the Twelfth?"

"Uh, yeah." She moves toward Emily, digging a business card from the pocket behind her badge. "Ms. DeWitt? I've got to go but give me a call on my work phone when you get an answer?"

The woman nods absentmindedly, phone cradled into her shoulder.

Kate joins the boys as they walk down the stairs to the lobby of the building.

"You sure you're up to taking in a kid?" asks Esposito, holding the door open for the other two.

Ryan laughs, nudging his partner with his elbow. "Forget Beckett. Is Castle up to taking in a kid?"

"Shut up, you two. I'm sure he'll be fine with it."

* * *

She's staring at the board, maddeningly empty even after a few hours of hard work, when someone says her name. The whiteboard marker falls onto her desk, hitting the pile of phone records and halting, as she turns.

The woman from Child Services is just outside the doors of the elevator. She waves Kate over, smiling. Good news, Kate prays. No need for the boy to be stuck in a crowded foster home for however long it takes to find a permanent home.

"Detective Beckett?" Emily says, shifting things in her arms to shake Kate's hand. "I hope you're still interested in taking on Chase Martin here."

The boy is in a carrier, a blanket draped over his eyes but Kate can see his legs kicking against the quilt beneath him.

"Yeah," Kate sighs. "Definitely."

"Good. Mr. Castle passed the background check that Child Services ran on him and my boss seems to think that keeping the boy with the police is a good idea. You know how long you can support him?"

"However long it takes to find him a real home."

Emily grins. "Even better. It might take a week, maybe two, to find him some loving foster parents. Here's my business card. You give me a call if anything goes wrong with the situation, okay?"

"Of course. Thank you, Miss DeWitt."

The woman checks Chase one last time before she hits the button for the elevator.

Kate picks up the carrier, the baby bag next to it. Chase gurgles from under the blanket on the walk from the elevator to her desk. She sets the carrier on her desk, peeking under the dark orange blanket. The boy giggles, reaching to grab for her fingers.

"Hey, baby," she says, tickling his bare feet. "How you doing?"

He laughs, curling his feet up closer to his body, away from her fingers.

"Such a happy boy."

"That the rugrat from the scene?" Esposito asks from his desk, phone cradled in his shoulder as he sits on hold.

Kate narrows her eyes, dropping the blanket back over Chase. "Yes, it is."

"Police precinct might not be the best place for him to hang out. You planning on heading home soon?" Ryan is holding coffee mugs, preparing to settle in for a long night.

She checks the clock, finds that, sure, it's dinner time. "Yeah. We're gonna leave." Kate finds her keys, shrugs on her coat, and loops her arm under Chase's carrier. "Give me a call if something big breaks, okay?"

They throw little salutes back at her as she heads for the elevator.

* * *

Kate opens the door to the apartment with Chase on her hip, balancing the carrier in the crook of her arm, her purse and the baby bag tucked into it. She kicks her heels off and they skitter under the entryway table, losing a few inches and allowing her arches to get some relief.

"Oh good. You're home. Because dinner is…" Castle trails off as he rounds the corner with two glasses of wine in his hands.

She smiles, just a little because he looks so shocked. "Hey."

"Beckett. Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Yes. I had hired a surrogate mother for us about a two years ago. This is our son. He's only about eight months; long process, you understand. Hope you're cool with this." His eyes widen further, big dark circles in the light of the apartment. "Kidding. I'm kidding, Castle."

He slumps in relief, putting the glasses on the counter in order to free up a hand to tug through his hair. "God, that is no way to start this conversation. Explain the presence of..." He gestures to the boy, sleeping against Kate's shoulder.

"Just let me put these things down," she says, dropping the bags next to the couch before sitting heavily near the end, close enough to the arm to rest her body against it. Castle sits next to her, practically crushing her legs, and wraps his fingers around her ankle. "Okay. The double homicide on the Upper West? That was his parents. The perps left Chase alone and Child Services was going to put him somewhere for a while as they looked for a family to take him and…" She looks over at Castle, feeling her chest clench for this boy. "And so I took him. I've seen the places that Child Services uses and they're not pretty, Castle. We have so much room here and you know what to do with babies and I just couldn't leave him. Is this okay? Are you okay with this because if you aren't, I can call the lady from Child Services and she'll come get Chase. But I just couldn't -"

Castle cuts her off with a squeeze of his hand on her ankle. "It's good. I'll admit I'm a little surprised but it's okay."

She's not convinced. His face is tense, his mouth a hard line. "Seriously. I don't want you, us, to do this if you're not up to it."

"Beckett, it's good. You're doing such a good thing for the boy and, to be honest," he says, lips starting to break into what might become a smile, "I've missed having a kid in this place."

Her breath catches in her throat. He's missed having a kid here. Alexis is off in Boston, finding a place to live for grad school come fall and only comes home during major breaks in the semester and even then, twenty-five isn't exactly a kid anymore. And she and Castle… They never talked about having kids. Hell, they haven't even really talked about marriage.

"Hey. Let's eat," he says, interrupting her as he gets to his feet. He holds his hands down and Kate relinquishes the sleeping infant. Castle expertly cradles the boy against his chest, a hand at his back to support him. "His name's Chase?"

"Mhm. Chase Martin." Kate rounds him to grab up the wine glasses. What she wants is to down both of them and then maybe the rest of the bottle – it's one of the really good reds that he knows she loves – but Chase whimpers, signaling that he's awake, and Kate knows it's not a good idea. Castle may know what he's doing with an infant but she's charting new waters. She needs a level head.

The steak tips and white rice he made for dinner is on the counter, already plated up. Like he knew she'd want – need – the red meat. "I think we'll need to find something else for dinner. Don't think he can eat steak quite yet."

He doesn't hear her. When she turns, Castle is leaning the small of his back against the couch with Chase standing on his thighs. Holding onto the boy's hands, Castle bounces his leg, making Chase giggle. "Hey, Chase," he says, leaning his head forward so their foreheads touch. "Hey, little man."

Chase lets go of Castle's fingers and for a moment, Kate watches as the infant wobbles, his ankles starting to buckle and slip off Castle's legs. She lunges forward, the wine from the glasses sloshing over the side and down her knuckles. But of course Castle snags the boy around his waist as Chase claps his hands on Castle's cheeks.

"Castle?" Kate calls, holding her hands over the sink to let the wine drip into the bowl rather than onto the floor. He looks over and Chase follows, fingers curling against Castle's ears. "Dinner?"

"Uh, there's some mac-and-cheese in the cupboard. We can save the steak and rice for another night when we don't have my man Chase here."

Kate moves into the kitchen, barefeet curling against the cool tile. She's got water boiling on the stovetop, the box of macaroni sitting on the counter. As soon as she dumps the Spongebob Squarepants macaroni into the pot and gives it a stir, she paces back to the living room.

Castle has Chase on the couch, balanced on his knees so the boy is facing him. The toddler's legs swing on either side of Castle's as Kate leans her arms on the couch behind them.

"You're kinda cute," she says, touching a finger to the Chase's cheek.

Chase giggles, grabbing Kate's hand. "Cute!" he parrots, patting his free hand against Castle's jaw.

"Yeah, she just likes me for my body," Castle whispers into the boy's ear.

"I heard that," Kate says, tugging on his ear. "But it's true. Your personality stinks."

"Hey!" He turns enough to clap a hand over her mouth. "Not in front of the child."

Kate loves the way he shivers when she pursues her lips to kiss his palm. "I think we should let the kid know as early on as possible that you are not the person that the public thinks you are."

As he gaps at her, Kate reaches over the back of the couch and scoops Chase up. "Come on, smart boy. We can make dinner together while Castle figures out a place for you to sleep."

He's up right behind her, at her heels as she goes to stir the macaroni with one of the big wooden spoons. "He can sleep with us." When she starts to shake her head, he places a finger over her lips. "It's not like we have a crib or anything and he can't sleep in Alexis's old bed. Just makes sense."

Kate balances the boy on her hip as she drains the pasta in a colander, putting the shaped macaroni back into the pot. "It's just…" she trails off, cutting a bit of butter off the stick, adding it to the mix of milk and cheese powder in the pot. "I had plans for tonight. For you."

His eyes darken as he steps closer. "Beckett…"

She holds a hand out, pressing it against his chest as he tries to corner her. "Not happening now. Especially with this guy in the place."

"What if he does sleep in Alexis's room? Can we continue your plans then?" So much hope in his voice that Kate nearly considers it. Then she shakes her head, ducking away from him. "Come on, Beckett!"

"No. It's creepy just knowing he's in the house while we're… You know." She has the urge to cover Chase's ears during the conversation. The boy probably doesn't understand any of the underlying meaning but still.

"Fine," he sighs, turning to dish up the mac-and-cheese into bowls. "But once he's gone, you're mine."

"I'm not yours," she insists, finding the baby formula in Chase's bag and preparing it once she hands the boy off to Castle. "Put him in his carrier for dinner?"

She trusts him to figure out the baby carrier as she pours out water, bringing everything over to the table. And he does. Chase is buckled into the carrier, set on one of the chairs as Castle sits next to him. The boy gurgles happily as Kate shakes the formula in the bottle.

"Ready for dinner, Chase?" she asks, tipping the bottle toward him.

Holding the bottle for the boy in one hand, she maneuvers her own fork with the other, scooping up the mac-and-cheese. She's trying to make faces at Chase around her food, grinning at him as he wiggles his feet in the carrier.

"Such a good boy, aren't you?" It's in that baby voice, the high-pitched one reserved for infants and pets. Kate works to bring it down an octave, taking the bottle away to give him a chance to digest the formula. When she looks over, Castle is watching, Spongebob mac-and-cheese abandoned. "What? Castle, if you don't want to do this…"

He drops the fork onto the table as he reaches across the table for her wrist. "Hey. I really want to do this, to help. If that means we hold onto Chase for a few days, that's what we'll do."

Kate shakes her head, looking at Chase as she lets his little hands pull the bottle back toward him. "I'm just nervous." She barrels on, avoiding his eyes. "You've done this before and you're so good at it and I'm just… not. I'm not good at the baby thing. What if I screw up and he's messed up for the rest of his life and it's because of me and -"

This time he stops her with a brief, hot kiss to her mouth. "Quiet. You're doing fine. Right, Chase? Beckett's doing fine."

Chase blinks for a moment, regarding both of them. Then his warm eyes settle on Kate, reaching for the bottle in her hand again.

"See? You're good."

She's not convinced but she tries to bury the thread of doubt she knows he'll still see in her eyes as she gives Chase the bottle, taking another forkful of macaroni in the same movement. Trying to truly believe that, for a week or so, she can handle this. Hell, she stares down murderers and death and takes shit from idiots at work. She can handle an infant.


	2. Chapter 2

_**The Thrill of the Chase**_

* * *

She can't handle an infant.

She's got the sleeves of her dress shirt rolled up to her elbows – a pointless move since the entire front is plastered to her chest – as she kneels in front of the tub in the upstairs bathroom. Her pants are soaked. The bun from the morning hangs down at the nape of her neck, tendrils curling wildly at her temples and cheeks. Water drops sparkle on her skin.

Chase splashes in the tub, sending more water over the edge and onto the tile.

"Careful, kid," she warns, capturing his wrists so he doesn't slap the surface of the water another time.

He's sitting in a few inches of water, holding onto an empty Tupperware container she had brought in to rinse the bubbles from his thin hair. He keeps filling the round container then dumping it out when it gets too heavy for his hands to hold onto. Not exactly the purpose she had meant it for but it kept him still enough for her to gently rub the shampoo into his hair. She's careful that the suds don't drip into his eyes, running her fingers along his temple to catch any that escape from the top of his head.

Her hands shake the entire time.

She thought she was good. She had babysat in high school, kids just as young Chase is, and they were easy. Sure, she only watched them for a few hours once a week but still.

There are a few times when Chase squirms, throwing his arms up into the air, sending water at her face, that she wants Castle here beside her. He knows how to handle infants in the bath.

"Calm down, Chase."

He giggles, placing a hand against her cheek. Her make-up has to be smeared, her hair a tangled mess, so she lets him thread his hand into her hair. With the boy distracted, Kate takes the opportunity to cup water to pour over his head.

Chase turns to blow a wet raspberry against her arm, snorting when Kate laughs. Then he butts his head against her elbow, dropping the Tupperware into the water as he snuggles.

A moment later, he grabs the bowl and tips it over the edge of the tub.

"No," Kate groans as the water splashes all over her shirt and pants even as Chase bounces on the floor of the tub. "That's not what we use this for," she tells Chase, taking the container for his little fists, setting it out of his reach.

A snap echoes in the bathroom. When she turns, Castle is in the doorway with his phone held up in front of him, grinning. As she's distracted, Chase splashes the water again and it hits her already-soaked clothing.

"I'm gonna kill you, Richard Castle," she growls, snagging a towel from the rack. "As soon as we're dried off, you're a dead man."

She drapes the towel against her side, lifting Chase up out of the tub. The boy grabs for her hair, knocking their foreheads together as he smacks a kiss against her cheek.

Another flash then Castle is gone, running down the hallway.

"You better run," she mutters. "He's dead after this, Chase. Stupid man and his gadgets." Kate folds the towel back up over Chase, rubbing his back gently as she starts back toward their bedroom. "Don't you become one of those men, okay, kid?"

Chase is pushing his nose into her neck, wet fingers slipping against her neck. Probably not listening. She turns her head as she carefully makes her way down the stairs and finds his eyes closed, lashes brushing her skin.

Strange that the boy can go for basically flooding their upstairs bathroom to quiet as a mouse as he dozes off on her shoulder. She likes him better like this.

Castle isn't to be found in the living room. Smart man considering how utterly stupid he is at times. Kate finds the diaper bag that has Chase's pajamas in them. Chase is heavy as she lays him on the couch cushions, brushing his wet hair back from his forehead. His eyes blink open, mouth turning up in a smile.

"Hey, buddy," she says, wiping down his body with the towel. Diaper in place, Kate pulls on the striped onesie. "Ready for bed?" He's already grabbing for her shirt, holding himself to her chest. "Thought so. Where's the other one?"

He's hunched over the laptop, keys clicking as his fingers fly over the keyboard in his boxers and a t-shirt, hair a mussed mess. The lights are all off and the glow of the screen makes him look ghostly.

"What're you doing?" she asks, looking for the extra blanket in the closet.

"Uploading those photos to twitter, introducing the world to my long-lost son."

She nearly fumbles Chase as she runs to the side of the bed, swatting at his fingers. "No. Castle, no."

"You ashamed of our kid?" He wraps his hand around her damp shirt, pulling her back down for a kiss. Kate barely manages to get her free hand up to support Chase's back, tipping forward, off-balance. He catches her shoulder, holding her up as he nips at her lower lip.

"Castle," she sighs, stepping back. "Seriously. Write so we can go to bed."

The laptop snaps shut. "Alexis was never this much of a deterrent as a baby. Give him to me," he says, holding empty arms out for Chase. "You go get changed."

Chase snuffles as he transfers from Kate's arms to Castle's but quiets once the latter settles him against his chest. He's talking to the boy in a soft whisper as she unbuttons the blouse, striping it off on the way to the bathroom.

Streaked make-up removed and hair untangled from little fingers, Kate returns in just her underwear. She can feel his eyes travel up her and, damn, she wishes Chase wasn't around because he's looking at her like he looked at her that first night. Like she was a treasure. She does her best to ignore his heated gaze as she gets her leggings from the dresser, one of his shirts from his drawers and pulls them on. The bed dips when she kneels on the side of the mattress, flopping onto her side so that Chase is between them.

"You're sure he won't fall off?" she asks, rubbing her thumb over Chase's chubby cheek.

Castle drops the laptop onto the bedside table, shaking his head. "He's safe as long as he stays between us. I did this with Alexis a few times with a pillow on the other side. She was always perfectly fine."

Kate scoots down under the covers, wiggling her toes against the chill of the sheets as she pulls Chase closer. Castle reaches over her, flicking the light off before placing another kiss against her temple.

"Night, Beckett."

She smiles, shifting her head to touch her lips to his before he moves to his side of the bed. "Night, Castle."

* * *

Chase whines, reaching out in the darkness of the bedroom, connecting with her arm.

"Come here, little man," Kate whispers, her voice scratchy with sleep. She finds his body under the covers and pulls him closer to her. Chase's fingers wrap around the worn-thin fabric of her t-shirt. His nose nuzzles into her chest as he sighs. "That's it. Just go back to sleep, sweet boy."

Kate sweeps her fingers down over Chase's back, holding onto his shirt. He's warm as he cuddles into her, almost too warm but she credits that to the fact she's never really held a sleeping baby so close for so long before. She brushes a soft kiss over his head, feeling his knees dig into her stomach.

"God, I wish I had a camera."

When she looks up, she sees Castle propped up on one elbow, watching her in the darkness. "Hm?"

His hand touches Chase's head, smoothing the blonde hair turned brown with the leftover water from his tub. "You ever think about having kids?"

It hits her in the gut. She can feel her mouth fall open against Chase's head. "Castle, I…"

"Just… Answer the question. Please."

"I guess. I mean, yeah. But mostly that was before Mom. After that, I didn't want to put anyone through what I went through so I never really planned for children." She finds his eyes, sees the want and love shining there. "Not even when you came into the picture."

"Wow," he murmurs, letting his head fall onto his pillow, resting on his bicep but still looking right at her. "Not even my rugged good looks could convince you to reproduce?"

She snakes her hand around Chase to smudge her fingers over his lips. "Especially with you around. I couldn't let you be a single dad again."

Castle captures her hand against his cheek. She can tell he wants to protest from the way his jaw works under her palm.

"No, Castle. You did a fantastic job with Alexis."

"She's going to grad school next year," he mutters.

Kate smiles, rubbing her thumb along his cheekbone. "Proving my point. She's such a good person and while some of that is her alone, a lot of it is how you raised her. But I can't let you do that again."

"You're gonna be okay, you know?"

"Can't know that." Chase mumbles something making Kate laugh as his lips tickle her collarbone. She squeezes his chubby ankle, stilling him. "Nothing is certain."

"Wrong." She blinks as he shakes his head, squinting her eyes at him. "We're certain. You and me."

She has to pause, let that sink in. He's sure about them. About her. Kate swallows, pushing her head into her pillow. "Still." She feels him brush a kiss over her hair. "Night."

With Chase curled into her body and Castle making sure that he doesn't roll off from the other side, Kate sighs. At least one of them is sure of something.

* * *

He wakes up when something connects with his side. Hard.

"No need for violence," he groans, trying to get back to sleep. "Just… a few more minutes."

Except it happens again and he fumbles against the bed to try and catch Kate's elbow or her fingers; whatever it is that keeps attacking him. He connects with a foot instead. It takes him a minute to remember what was going on.

Chase. The little boy that Kate brought home from that case. The one who had prompted that talk last night…

The baby starts to cry, squirming so that his arms and legs tangle with the sheets. Castle slides from the bed, taking the boy with him. He cradles Chase against him, barefeet sticking on the hardwood as he moves into the living room.

"Hey, little man," he murmurs, smoothing a hand over Chase's curling blonde hair. "You were so good last night. Mostly slept right through. That was good. Cause you know," he says, neatly avoiding the couch as he nearly stubs his toe. "Beckett's new at this baby thing even though she did fine last night."

The morning sun is peeking into the living room, barely reaching the kitchen. Chase blinks in the light anyway, hiding his face into Castle's neck.

"You hungry, Chase?" he asks, rubbing his fingers against the boy's back, holding him close. "I bet you are. I'm always hungry in the morning."

It takes a minute for him to find the diaper bag from last night. Kate stashed it near the coffee table but the formula isn't in the side pocket. Right. They put it in the fridge. With Chase balanced on his hip, Castle washes his hands before he grabs the bottle pieces from the drying rack. He grabs the container of powder, cracking it open. He scoops the formula out, dumping it into the bottle.

Chase gurgles, waving his arms toward the bottle.

Castle smiles, dropping the scoop back into the container. "Mhm. Food." He takes a bottle of water out, testing the temperature of it against the back of his hand. It's way too cold so he lets it sit on the counter next to the bottle of powdered formula. "Let's see. I'm feeling toast."

As he spins the bread loaf, Chase jerks forward, grabbing for the bag. "'oas'."

To appease the boy, he gives him one of the large magnets off the fridge. "There. Amuse yourself." He sticks the bread into the toaster. The magnet hits the ground a moment later and Chase squeals, burying his head in Castle's shoulder in fear. Castle replaces the magnet, rubbing a hand over the boy's hair.

Once the toast is buttered, Castle pours the right amount of water into the formula bottle, stopping the top so he can shake it. With one hand holding the toast and bottle, the other supporting Chase, he flops onto the couch. The arm of the couch supports his elbow as he eases Chase down enough to tip the bottle toward the infant. "Breakfast time, smart boy."

It takes some finagling so that he can feed Chase and eat his toast at the same time; it's been a while since he's done the balancing thing with an infant. His jaw cracks as he yawns, watching Chase. The boy keeps trying to grab the bottle, his fingers curled into fists that beat against Castle's hand.

"You look good with him."

He looks up, nearly upsetting the boy. Kate is leaning a shoulder on the bookshelves, one foot resting on the top of the other. Her hair, tangled from sleep, hands over one shoulder, covering the strip of skin visible from the oversized shirt. She looks tired but her smile is soft and genuine.

"Yeah?"

She nods, hooking her elbow in the opposite hand. "Yeah. Really good."

All he wants to do is go over and push her against those shelves and stumble their way back to the bedroom for sleepy sex. But he can't because Chase starts to kick, shoving the bottle away. "Done, my man?"

Kate wanders over, balancing herself on the arm of the couch, left arm braced along the back. Her hand threads through his hair. "Listen, Castle. About last night…"

"No need," he says, leaning his head back against her hand. "Not gonna push you into anything."

"Shush and listen, okay? Just this once?" She rests her chin on his shoulder, reaching around him to brush a hand over Chase's head. "I love you. And maybe, in a year or so, I'll be okay enough to have kids and not worry about them becoming like me." Before he can open his mouth, she continues. "It's irrational and stupid but I can't help it. But someday. Okay?"

"Whatever you want." With his free hand, he tugs her down for a brief, soft kiss. "Whenever you want."

Kate lifts Chase from his arms, tucking the boy against her chest before taking the bottle from Castle's hand. "Go shower. I'll take care of him for half an hour." She smiles when he only blinks, nudging him with her elbow. "Go. I got him, right, Chase?"

The boy grabs for the bottle that Kate holds just out of his reach. Totally unaware of the switch just made.

"See? We're good." As if to prove it, she lets Chase guide the bottle back to his mouth, smoothing her thumb over his little ear.

Once Castle has disappeared into the bedroom and she can hear the shower switch on, she sighs, slumping against the counter. A sliver of self-hatred sticks under her skin because he wants kids. With her. And she's the one with the baggage, the one stopping them from moving forward.

Chase regards her with half-closed eyes, fingers curled around hers. His weight in her arms is comforting instead of foreign like she thought it would be. She can do this; take care of him for twenty minutes by herself and prove to herself that she can handle a baby. Little feet kick against her wrist as he pushes the bottle away, squirming.

"Done?" she asks, setting the bottle on the counter. "Good, because I need coffee." Kate switches the coffee machine on. She finds the diaper bag with one of the burp rags, positioning it on her shoulder. She bounces Chase, patting his back as she goes to pour out coffee. The steam curls over the lip of the mug as she blows on it lightly, taking the first sip. It warms her body, bringing a level of normalcy to the morning.

Until Chase burps up some of the formula onto the rag on her shoulder. He hits his fists against her arm, starting to cry.

She has to put the mug of coffee down to wipe at Chase's mouth before she tucks him into her elbow, his watery brown eyes blinking up at her. "You're a good boy," she tells him, getting her coffee again so she can pace over to the windows. She opens the door to the balcony, toes curling against the warming red-brown tile.

The city is coming to life, the horns of cabs joining in with the blare of the river taxi. She can even hear the faint click of the heels of commuters running for the subway. Chase watches, captivated by the action, trying to lean forward to see the street.

"Nope, little man," she says, keeping her hand at his stomach as she leans back against the windows. "You're staying here. No pulling a Spiderman and swinging from building to building."

"You're a natural, you know." He's in the doorway, dressed in jeans that she know are so well-worn that they feel soft and a deep red t-shirt. He runs a hand through his damp hair, the water shaking onto her face.

She swallows the mouthful of coffee, turning her head. "No, I'm not."

"But you are. Look at you," he says, sidling in next to her so he can wrap an arm around her waist. "Balancing Chase and coffee and taking him in until a family can be found. You're so good at this."

"Castle, I'm not gonna change my mind right now…" she starts, pulling away from his side.

"Wasn't trying to. I was just commenting that if we do, that kid is going to be pretty darn lucky."

"Of course it is." She pushes up on her toe tips to smudge her lips over his jaw. "Cause they'll have you as a dad." When he only blinks at her, she tries for a real kiss, right at the corner of his mouth. "When I have kids, it's gonna be with you. Only with you."


	3. Chapter 3

_**The Thrill of the Chase**_

* * *

She goes into work late.

Castle insists that he can stay at home, take care of Chase. In fact, he practically dressed her for the day and shoved her out the front door after tucking her badge and gun into her purse with a brief kiss. Chase planted a sloppy kiss on her cheek as well, waving little fingers along with Castle at the front door as she headed for the stairwell.

When the elevator doors open, Ryan and Esposito's heads swivel to look at her.

"How was playing Mom last night, Beckett?" asks Esposito, tossing a pencil at her as she passes him on the way to her desk.

Kate catches the pencil, placing it in the mug on her desk with the rest of her writing utensils and a pair of scissors that stick with left-over adhesive. "Fun. We get anywhere on the perps?"

The board is fairly empty, a few things added in Ryan's neat capital letters from after she left. The boys talk even as she reads the updated information. No surveillance cameras in the building. No one saw or heard anything – a true New Yorker reaction to anything.

"Have we talked to co-workers of Bradley or Julie?" she asks, spinning in her chair to face the board.

"On the docket for today," says Ryan. "Bradley worked at a local news station doing research. Julie worked at Rikers as a corrections officer."

"Tough gig," she says, picking up the pen from the top of her keyboard and clicking it on. She has to dig for the legal pad so she can write notes on it for the interviews. "Probably has plenty of enemies from her time there." Kate doesn't look up from the paper as she outlines information. "I'll take Rikers if you two go to Bradley's news station and talk to his co-workers."

"You sure you want the prison?"

She narrows her eyes at Esposito. "Yeah. Or can you two not handle some reporters?" They're quiet so she nods. The both of them are on their feet, gathering up their notebooks and pencils and weapons on their way out. Her phone isn't in her purse – probably at home, charging on the bedside table after last night – so she picks up the desk phone, cradling it against her shoulder as she dials his number.

"Hey." He sounds breathless when he answers and she can hear Chase in the background. "What's wrong?"

"Something has to be wrong for me to call you?" she teases, smiling at the monitor as she runs a quick background check on the victims.

"Uh, no," he fumbles. "But… Is something wrong?"

Kate laughs, one short exhale. "No. Nothing's wrong. Just wanted to let you know I'm heading over to Rikers so my phone would be off but –"

"Your phone's here."

"I'm aware. This is more of a check-in. How's Chase doing?"

The boy giggles and she can hear the clapping of his hands. "He's a handful."

"Most of your gender are," Kate states, spinning in her chair in a semi-circle, just as far as the cord on the phone will allow her. "I'm going to talk to Child Services once I'm back from Rikers, see if they've gotten any families looking for a rowdy eight month old. I'll try to get out early so you can take a break from him."

"Do your job, Beckett, then come home. That's what we need."

"Okay," she sighs. "Talk to you later, Castle."

She ducks into Gates's office, letting the woman know where she and the boys were headed, before grabbing her keys, weapon, and badge.

* * *

Chase is cuddled into the corner of the couch, playing with his toes as Castle takes stock of the boy's belongings. A few more servings of formula, another clean burp rag, some diapers, assorted toys. No more clothes excepting the ones he wore yesterday and the pajamas he still has on.

"You need more stuff if you're gonna hang here, bud," he tells Chase, dropping onto the other end of the couch.

The boy looks over at him, blinking a single time before attempting to stick his foot into his mouth.

"Let's go shopping, my man." Beckett'll kill him if he goes overboard with buying things for the kid who's gonna be with them for such a short time but seriously. The boy needs more than one pair of clothes and they'll definitely run out of formula soon. He could eat real food, maybe some really soft mashed potatoes and things but just in case. With a sigh, he scoops Chase up, popping the boy's foot from his mouth.

Changing the boy back into the old clothes from yesterday comes easily to him from years of doing the same thing with Alexis as a baby. Same green sweater and jeans with the addition of the shoes he finds in the depth of the bag. Chase kicks out once Castle has the sneakers tied, giggling when it connects with Castle's arm.

He leaves a note for Kate, just in case she gets back to the apartment before he and Chase. Slim chance since it takes forever to just get through security at Rikers before she can even start interviewing people there. She'll be lucky if she gets home by the end of shift nevermind early.

"Okay, Chase. Off we go."

A quick Google search gives him the addresses of a few shops and he hails a cab outside of the building, balancing Chase in one of his arms as the kid waves at Eduardo through the window of the taxi.

* * *

She has a list of people who hated Julie Martin's guts. Everyone hates the correctional staff. The names are up on the white board, lines through a few of them that she had already run down. The others stare back at her, blurry in her sleep-hazed eyes. She considers, briefly, grabbing another cup of coffee to get her through the rest of the list. And she still needs to talk to Emily DeWitt with Child Services about finding Chase a permanent home.

"Yo, Beckett!" Esposito is at his desk, phone cradled in his shoulder. "Go home. Ryan and I'll take the rest of the names."

"No, I'm –"

"Go home."

Part of her wants to fight it, wants to stay here. The other part feels bad leaving Castle alone with Chase for longer than necessary. The man is fantastic with kids but even she knew he'd need some time away from the infant after a while.

So she closes down the computer and slips her heels back on under the desk. "Thanks, guys."

"Say hi to Mr. Mom for us," teases Ryan.

Kate narrows her eyes at him as she gathers her things. "Goodnight."

She fights traffic on the way downtown, taking some of the sideroads. She wishes she had her cell to find out if Castle needs her to pick up dinner or something for Chase to eat. But she doesn't have her phone so she wings it, hoping he made food.

The loft is quiet when she unlocks the front door. Strange, considering Castle thrives on noise and chaos. Kate drops her things in the hallway, slipping her shoes off in order to search for the boys.

She finds them in the study. The desk light is on, casting a soft glow onto their faces. Castle's asleep, head resting on the arm of the leather couch. But he has his hand firmly on Chase's back as the infant to keep him in place on his chest. Even as the rest of him slackens in sleep, that arm is tense. He's so good.

Chase is awake, blinking at her in the low light. His hands are curled around Castle's t-shirt as if anchoring himself.

"Hey, buddy," she murmurs, reaching out to brush a hand over the boy's hair. "You and Castle taking a nap? Guess this means I'm in charge for dinner."

She leaves the two of them on the couch until Chase whines. When she lifts the boy off of Castle's body, the older of the two groans, hand reaching out to steady Chase. Kate presses her lips to his cheek.

"It's okay, Castle. I've got him."

His arm relaxes, falling onto the ground next to the couch. Kate swings Chase up onto her hip, walking toward the kitchen after closing the door to the study behind her. The infant holds onto her shirt, nuzzling his nose into her neck.

"Let's see," Kate muses, looking around the kitchen. A ham sits in the sink, defrosting. Castle obviously had started thinking of dinner and gotten distracted. "How does ham and sweet potatoes sound to you, little man?"

She gets a baking sheet out, covers it with aluminum foil. With Chase still attached to her side, it takes a while for her to cut the sweet potatoes into little pieces, spreading them out on the baking sheet before adding olive oil, salt, pepper, and a dash of the mixed spices Castle loves. She throws the veggies into the oven, setting the timer. The ham goes into a Pyrex dish, also put in the oven next to the potatoes.

"There we go. You've been quiet," she says to Chase, pacing into the bedroom through the hallway rather than the study. "Castle tucker you out all day?"

The boy gurgles as she sets him on the bed, quickly stripping her clothes off, tossing them into the hamper. She replaces the shirt and dress pants with leggings and a worn-thin sweatshirt. Chase had rolled over by the time she turns back, on his back with one of his feet in both of his hands as he tries to fit his toes into his mouth. She smiles, running a finger over his chubby cheek on her way to the bedside table.

Her phone is still plugged in, a few messages from the lab, Lanie. She ignores them, pulling up the camera to snap a picture of the boy. Castle would tease her about it if he found out. Kate puts the phone back, scooping Chase up.

Castle is still sleeping when she goes through the study. If she didn't have the infant so wide awake on her hip, she would wake the man up with a series of hot kisses that would lead to a series of hot touches. But Chase giggles, reaching for Castle's shirt.

"Nope. Gotta go get dinner ready, bud."

She needs a place to put the boy for a minute, just to turn the sweet potatoes over and check the ham. The counter isn't a safe place – the way he squirms, he'd be on the ground in under thirty seconds. So she puts him on the floor in the living room, right on the rug with the command to stay still.

Judging by the wail, he doesn't.


	4. Chapter 4

_**The Thrill of the Chase**_

* * *

A scream jerks him awake instantly. His hands scramble across his chest, searching for the boy. A nap was a bad idea. A really bad idea.

"Chase?" he calls, fingers running over the ground right next to him. He has to be somewhere. Rubbing sleep from his eyes, he swings his legs off the couch, carefully in case the infant is right there. It's too dark to see anything in the study and he fumbles for the light switch. Kate is going to kill him if the kid gets hurt.

The crying quiets when murmuring in the living room starts up. Kate's home? When he opens the door to the other room, she's got Chase in her arms, bouncing the boy gently as she paces behind the couch. She's not in her work clothes which means she's been here a while. She looks frazzled and tired under the calm she is trying to exude; kids can sense emotions.

"What happened?" he asks, startling her.

She turns, rubbing her fingers over Chase's head. "He charged the sofa. The sofa won. Right, my man?" The boy whimpers in response so she places a soft kiss on his forehead, smoothing a finger over his cheek. "He tire you out, Castle?"

"I took him shopping. It was exhausting. You're making dinner?"

"Shoot. Take him?" Kate hands the infant off to him without waiting for a response, running back to the kitchen. She's pulling a baking sheet from the oven, setting it on a hotpad on the counter. With a fork in one hand, she starts flipping over chunks of something orange. "Wait. You took him shopping? For what?"

"Baby stuff," he says, sitting at the kitchen counter, putting Chase in front of him so he can examine the boy's head. "We'll need it."

She slides the pan back into the oven, taking out the dish with the ham. "How much stuff do we need for a week?"

He tickles Chase's feet, making the boy giggle. "Let the experts handle this, Beckett. Diapers, food, a few toys for him to play with." When Kate rolls her eyes, he levels a glare at her. "He'll need them. Kids get bored easily."

"Ah." Kate puts aluminum foil over the ham to keep it warm. "That explains all of your gadgets."

"Set myself up for that one," he whispers to the boy. "But it's true. And I didn't go that far overboard. Just enough to set him up when he gets a family." Castle scoops Chase up to sit him in the new high chair, placing a ring of plastic keys on the little table. "Entertain yourself, little man. I need to talk to Beckett for a while." He drags her into the study, shutting the door behind them. "Before you say anything, just listen."

She cuts him off, pushing him up against the desk as she finds his lips with hers. His fingers tighten on her waist, hauling her up onto his thigh, allowing him to slant his mouth over hers. Out of breath, she rests her forehead to his chin. "God, I've missed you," she murmurs.

"Remind me to stay away from the precinct more often," he says a moment before he kisses her again, savoring the moan the motion pulls from her throat.

"We can't do this. Not with the kid sitting right out there."

"But you want to," he clarifies with a grin.

She gives him one final brush of her lips. "You're not helping the situation." She slides off his leg and he reaches for her, trying to bring her close again. But she throws him a look that warns him, clearly communicating that if she stays near him, things are going to happen that shouldn't happen with Chase right there.

He drags a hand over his hair, shoving off of the desk. "How's his parents' case going?"

"Good. I mean, slow. Julie was a corrections officer so she's got a long list of people who really didn't like her. Ryan and Esposito were looking into Bradley's co-workers but he was a researcher at a news station. Probably not a job that got him too many enemies."

Chase's banging on the high chair, plastic keys clicking, makes her sigh.

"Come on," she says, touching his elbow with a brush of her fingertips. "Let's go take care of our kid."

He hesitates before following her because he is far too busy staring at the back of her head. By the time he wraps his brain around her words, she has the boy up in her arms, her forehead touching Chase's. "Think your orange things are done?"

"Those orange things are sweet potatoes. And yeah, they should be good." With Chase snuggled into her side, she pours out water. "I didn't get a chance to talk to Children Services today. Have to do that tomorrow."

"You want to get rid of him that quickly?" he asks, transferring the sweet potatoes onto a platter.

"Not… I didn't mean…"

Holding the plate in one hand, he cups her elbow, pulling her close. "I know."

But she keeps talking, taking the food from him. "He needs a real family, Castle. We're always leaving at all hours of the night and kids need someone who will be there for him and we're not that. Not right now, at least."

"I know," he repeats, going back for the ham. "It was a joke, Beckett."

She brushes a hand over Chase's hair as she buckles him back into the high chair. "I'm sorry. I'm tired. My brain's not functioning at top speed." With one of the forks, she stabs a cube of sweet potato. "Feed us."

Once he puts the ham down, adding plates and silverware, Kate slides some of the sweet potatoes onto one of the plates and begins to mash them with the back of the fork. Before he sits, Castle grabs a spoon, one of the small tea spoons from the back of the silverware drawer, placing it in front of Chase. The kid immediately wraps his fingers around the handle, hitting the curved edge on the table.

"You sure he's not related to you," she teases, voice just loud enough to be heard over Chase's rhythmic banging.

"Funny," Castle says, pushing a plate of ham and sweet potatoes over to her. "Want to cut some ham up for him or…?"

She shakes her head, taking the spoon back from the boy. "Let's see how he does with the sweet potatoes."

Chase decides that the sweet potatoes are better suited for tossing at Castle than eating. The kid thinks it is the funniest thing in the world, scooping up the mashed-up potatoes, and throwing it as close to Castle's face as possible. One handful makes it onto his shoulder. The other skims his cheek and ends up on the ground behind Castle.

Kate spends the few seconds of one-sided food-fighting trying to hide her laughter behind her hand rather than stopping Chase. She does hand him a napkin, hand shaking as she reaches across the table. "You've got a little something on your face," she manages.

He wipes the sweet potato off his face, glaring at Kate before switching his gaze to the infant. "You are both grounded. So grounded."

"Relax, Castle. He's just having fun."

Then a piece of ham hits his chin. "Beckett?"

She smiles, one of those slow ones that screams mischief. "What? Just having some fun."

He nearly retaliates, stealing the spoon and some of the mashed-up sweet potatoes from Chase, but when he looks up, Kate is gone. "Running away, eh?"

Silence. Figures she would take this seriously.

"Hey, Chase. Wanna help me find Beckett?"

The boy giggles, smearing the potatoes across the table of the high chair.

"Fine. I'll do this on my own," he says, getting up and starting toward the living room. It would make sense; hiding behind the couch would be the easiest escape if she just slipped off her chair. "You stay there, buddy. Don't need to lose two of you."

She's not there. And she's not under the coffee table or behind the bookshelves or in the bedroom. Damn woman.

Chase laughs, babbling to himself out in the kitchen. Figuring it is better to not leave the trouble-maker alone for too long, Castle heads back into the other room. Kate will have to come out at some point.

"Let's try to eat the food this time," he says, sitting back at the table. Maybe if he ignores her absence, she'll reappear. Picking up the spoon, he finds some of the sweet potatoes that hadn't been tossed and holds it toward Chase. "Here."

The boy opens his mouth, eats the potatoes as if he hadn't thrown some of them not three minutes ago. Then he reaches for a piece of ham, chubby little fingers grabbing Castle's before he can put it on the table.

While Chase is pushing the ham around, Castle goes into the kitchen to get one of the dishrags so he can clean up the mess on the table and floor of the living room.

And he trips, falling onto his knees, hands looking for something, anything, to hold onto. He finds Kate's shoulders.

"Hi, Castle," she says, pushing up to kiss him gently. "You found me."

"Do I get a prize?" he asks.

"Maybe tonight. You did get a cradle or something for Chase, right?"

His fingers tickle under her shirt, dancing along her sides so that she arches up into him. "I did."

"Then let's go clean up the mess and get the little man into bed."


	5. Chapter 5

_**The Thrill of the Chase**_

* * *

He's so much better at this than she is.

She had tried getting ready with Chase in her arms, balancing the kid while putting on her make-up. After the third grab for the mascara wand – the first successful attempt which leaves a line of black along his little palm – she calls for Castle.

As she sits the boy on the edge of the sink, reaching behind her for a wash cloth to get the mascara off his hand, Castle stands in the doorway, watching. Kate isn't sure if he's watching her or Chase or both of them.

"What do you need?"

"Take him? I can't do two things at once with him grabbing at everything," she says as Chase makes a move for the toothbrushes.

Castle scoops Chase up and the kid dives his hands, clean of mascara, into Castle's hair. "You causing trouble, bud?" he asks, rubbing his thumb over Chase's side. Chase relaxes into Castle's body, little head resting on his shoulder.

She finishes with the make-up, tossing the lipstick into the zippered bag. "Think that's the only thing he knows how to do successfully," she mumbles. He looks innocent, snuggled into Castle's chest and peering at her with warm brown eyes. "Let's go."

"You don't mean that," he says, following her into the bedroom then out into the living room. When she turns, shooting him a questioning raise of her brow, he repeats himself. "He's good at staying up all night and running into furniture and making a mess of dinner."

Kate is picking up the toys that have scattered themselves around the living room, stuffing them into the shoulder bag they've been carrying around along with the infant. "All winning traits."

"Hey! You cannot tell me this face hasn't grown on you," Castle says, bouncing Chase on his hip as he tucks her badge into her back pocket, fingers tickling her through the denim and drawing a quick squeal from the woman. "Look at this charmer, Beckett. Reminds me of my childhood."

"So I should talk to Martha to find out how to handle any possible child of ours?"

"Funny," he mutters, opening the front door for her.

She walks behind Castle, making faces at Chase that cause the boy to giggle on the way to the elevator. The bag of toys and formula and jars of baby food that have found their way into their fridge bumps against her thigh, hitting her holster with every step.

And it's almost comforting after the week and a half with Chase. She feels as though she should be terrified of it, of having the routine of gathering up enough things to entertain the eight month old for the day and knowing that she might need to roll out of bed in the middle of the night to comfort the boy. It should be petrifying.

But Castle laces his fingers with hers once they step into the elevator, giving her a quick smile, and she can almost see this as a future for them. After years and years of being absolutely certain that she would never leave any child of hers motherless, she can very nearly see herself kissing Castle and their kid goodbye, leaving baby and daddy at home so she can go slay dragons.

It hits her hard, a wave of possibilities, of hopeful chances and she has to lean against Castle's side, finding his side with her hand, holding onto the fabric of his shirt as an anchor.

"You okay?" he asks, turning his head enough to touch his lips to her hair.

Kate smiles, looking up at him even as Chase kicks at her arm. "More than."

She drives, letting Castle sit in the backseat with Chase, going carefully through the city on the way to the precinct. Glances in the rearview mirror show her that the man is playing peek-a-boo with Chase, the permanent smile stuck on his face as the boy cackles with laughter. She risks driving single-handedly to reach back and touch his knee, needing to transfer some of her emotion over to him.

Castle peeks from behind his hand, eyes sparkling. "Hey."

"Hi," she returns, pulling her hand back and replacing it on the wheel.

They claim one of the open spots in front of the precinct, snagging it from another one of the cruisers coming in from the opposite side of the street. Castle slides out from the back even as Kate snags the bag of Chase's things. The desk sergeant waves as they pass by on the way to the elevator, the boy a regular fixture at this point.

"What time's Child Services showing up?" he finally asks as she leads the way over to her desk, dropping the quilted bag next to Castle's chair.

"In a half hour or so."

His face falls for a split second before he tries to perk up again. "He needs to leave?"

"He does." She sighs, smoothing the little polo they had put Chase in that morning. "He needs a real family. One that can always be there for him. And right now? We're not that. We could be but not right now, Castle."

Chase catches her fingers as she touches his chubby arm, babbling while meeting her eyes. Her heart clenches as she smiles at the boy, nearly giving in and taking him home again.

No. No, he needs parents who will be available any time of the day. Ones that aren't a cop who dives headfirst into cases and her writing partner who often finds himself in the line of fire just as often. He needs stability.

So for the next thirty minutes, they pretend Emily DeWitt isn't going to show up and talk about the foster family she found for Chase. Ryan and Esposito visit, the latter tossing Chase up into the air over his head and catching him before he falls. Ryan plays patty-cake with the boy. Kate even spies Gates grinning at Chase as he wiggles his fingers at her through the office window.

When the woman from Child Services steps off the elevator, a young couple trailing her, Kate stands, quickly spinning the white board away from their eyes. Castle has Chase in the break room and she can see them through the wide windows, Chase on the counter as Castle washes out dishes from their late breakfast.

"Miss Beckett," says Emily DeWitt, holding a hand out. "Nice to see you again."

"Same," she replies. "Let me go grab Castle and Chase and we'll meet you in the conference room? Do introductions all at the same time?"

"Sounds good." Emily nods the couple toward the room.

Kate takes a deep breath before going into the break room after the boys. Castle turns, soap bubbles on his nose and wet prints on his cheeks. "She's here?"

"Yeah. Wanna get the soap off of your -?" she asks, gesturing to his nose while handing him a paper towel.

She waits as he dries his face and Chase's hands before stepping close to him, wrapping her arms awkwardly around his waist. "It'll be okay," she murmurs into his ear, holding onto Chase's ankle, thumb stroking the little bones under the warm socks. She lingers for a moment, feeling Castle push his nose into her hair, his breath heavy against her shoulder. "Alright?"

He nods just once, letting her take Chase from him. "Let's go meet your new family, little man," he says, moving back into the bullpen.

Kate takes a moment to touch her forehead to Chase's, grinning when the boy curls his fingers around her ears to pull her cheek close enough for a sloppy kiss. She's going to miss him. "Come on, bud."

The couple is sitting next to one another, hands linked on the scarred surface of the conference room table. She's pretty, wildly curling red hair falling to her shoulders, and he's not classically handsome but his smile is genuine when Kate closes the door behind her and Castle.

She and Castle sit across the table from the couple, placing Chase on the table with his sneakers resting on Kate's thighs.

"This is Kate Beckett and Richard Castle," starts Emily, taking the head of the table while pulling out some paperwork from her bag. "And this is Laurel and Michael Francia."

The couple smiles, ones full of hope and nerves. It's the man who reaches over to shake hands while the woman blinks rapidly. "Thank you so much for taking care of him," Michael says.

Emily is still talking, explaining that Laurel and Michael's baby girl had been stillborn about a year ago and had been looking to adopt since then. Kate hears, feels her heart breaking for the young couple across from them.

"Now, if you could just sign here," she explains, sliding stapled pieces of paper in front of Kate and Castle. "Just releasing Chase back into custody of Child Services. Then I'll have Laurel and Michael sign their paperwork down at the offices."

She sees Castle's hand shake a little when he pens his familiar signature before sliding it to her. Chase grabs for the pen as Kate puts her sloping name on the line under his.

"Wonderful," says Emily, taking the papers back. "I'm sure you're busy at work here so I think Laurel and Michael can take Chase, bond a little on the ride to the office building."

Kate can nearly feel Castle's urge to scoop Chase up and run but she rests a hand on his knee, giving him a quick squeeze, before smiling at Laurel and Michael. "We do have a few things that we gathered over the last week for him if you want them," she offers. "Some food, toys, a bassinet. We can drop them off at the offices tomorrow, maybe."

Laurel sighs gratefully. "Thank you. Oh, thank you." She wraps Kate up in a surprise hug that has Chase squished between them. When the woman lets go, transfers her embrace to Castle, Michael steps over.

"You're more than welcome to visit," he says, voice soft and calming. "We don't know how to thank you for taking care of him."

Kate glances at Castle. "I think we'd like that."

Then she lets Michael take Chase, gathering the boy protectively into his arms. The other man bows his head, whispering into Chase's ear and causing them both to grin. Laurel joins them, pressing a kiss to both of Michael's and Chase's cheeks.

With final thank you's given out and another round of hugs, Laurel, Michael, and Emily disappear.

Kate picks up the coffee mugs from her desk, gesturing for Castle to follow her as she goes back into the break room. The coffee in the pot is still warm as she pours it into the cups, handing him one of them.

"He's gonna be okay," she says, taking a sip of the coffee. "They're good people."

"I know. I know. It's just…"

"You wanted to keep him."

Kate moves into him, careful to avoid spilling the coffee down the front of both of them, before pushing up on her toe tips. "Castle, someday. I don't know when and I don't know how soon. But someday, we can bring our own troublemaker into the precinct to spend the day with Ryan and Esposito. The same kid that will have kept us up all night and thrown mashed up peas at us when we tried to feed them the night before. And they'll be ours. Someday."

There is the faintest of glistening tears in his eyes when he dips his head down to touch his lips to hers. "Someday?"

"Yeah. Definitely."


	6. Someday

_**The Thrill of the Chase - Epilogue**_

* * *

"Momma, Momma, Momma!"

She hears him before she sees the little body speed-crawling toward her. His head bumps against her ankle and she has to catch herself on the doorframe so that she doesn't fall back out into the hallway. She drops her bags under the front table, scooping up the boy, kicking the door closed behind her.

His hair is a mess of brown curls, his face sticky with something she can't identify, and there are jelly stains on his shirt. His bare toes wiggle against her stomach, his jeans rolled up so she can tickle at his chubby calves.

"Hi, handsome," she says, brushing a hand through his hair as she moves into the apartment.

"Hey!" comes from the living room.

Kate grins, leaning against the back of the couch so that the squirming boy in her arms tips forward to grab at Castle's ears. "Wasn't talking to you," she murmurs, pressing a kiss to his cheek anyway. "He tire you out, old man?"

"Never." He tosses the iPad – she can see Baby Einstein paused on the screen – onto the coffee table, twisting to snag the waistband of the boy's pants so he topples into Castle's lap with a shouted giggle. "And I'm not old."

She hums in his ear, teeth nipping at the skin. "Prove it."

"Beckett," he growls, turning to capture her mouth with his. His tongue strokes along her lips and she has to reach an arm down, brace it on his thigh so that she doesn't fall over the back of the couch. "Don't tease."

The one year old pushes his way up between them, clapping his hands against Castle's chest as he places a sloppy kiss to Kate's cheek. "'iss, Dada! 'Iss!"

"Kiss who, buddy?"

"Me," he says, touching his little finger to his own lips. "'Iss me, Dada!"

As Castle blows raspberries against their son's neck, Kate goes into the study, locking her gun and badge into the safe hidden behind a false panel of books. She tosses her shoes into the bedroom closet, quickly changing into yoga pants and a t-shirt. When she comes back out, hair in the middle of being braided, the toddler is crawling his way over to the kitchen after Castle.

"Dinner ready?" she asks, watching carefully as the boy tries to lift himself up to standing with one of the barstools.

Castle is scooping something out of the crockpot, something that smells like that chili that she loves. "Yeah. Grab some food for Speed Racer there?"

Kate finds a Tupperware container of cut pieces of hot dog, some macaroni-and-cheese that she can reheat. As it revolves in the microwave, she pours out water, giving the boy who head-butts her again his sippy cup. "Here, bud," she says, picking the kid up and bringing him over to the high-chair. "Dinner."

She helps Castle bring the bowls of chili over, taking the macaroni-and-cheese with hot dog to the table with silverware. The boy grabs for the spoon, banging it against the side of the bowl. Kate takes it from him, setting it back on the table and holding it there as the toddler fumbles for it, getting more and more frustrated.

"No hitting, okay?" she asks firmly, drawing the boy's eyes up to her. He looks like he's going to defy her, that too determined look creeping into his green eyes. It's familiar because she's seen it in her eyes far too many times. So she counters, drawing on her own skills as she increases the pressure on the spoon. "No hitting."

Castle sounds like he wants to protest – she can feel his fingers skating over the small of her back in a quiet warning – but she only reaches back, touching his wrist.

The boy's eyes glisten with tears at having his instrument taken away then being scolded. Then he puts both of his hands out to Kate, wiggling his fingers. She leans forward, letting him curl his fingers into her hair. "'Iss, Momma?"

"You gonna stop hitting things?"

He nods and Kate gives him a kiss on the nose before letting go of the spoon. She watches, making sure that he only scoops up the noodles and doesn't rebel a little by banging the metal against the bowl before turning to face Castle. "Your genes," she says. Before he can argue – his mouth is already open to come up with some retort – she sticks a spoonful of chili into his mouth. "How went the editing?"

"Boring but necessary. Camelot still standing?" he teases.

"Me and the knights will live to fight another day." She's leaning over to catch a falling hot dog as she speaks, rubbing a thumb over the boy's chin to get rid of the cheese smear. "We could actually use your help," she says, finding his foot under the table and running her toes along the arch of his bones. "Some out of the box thinking."

"Maybe I can stop by tomorrow with him," Castle says, nodding toward the kid who is still dropping hot dogs onto the table, making a little collection next to the one Kate caught. "I'm sure Ryan and Esposito will want to visit."

She smiles, chewing on the ground beef and beans in the spicy stew. "Good plan. He get his bath aready?"

"This afternoon. Just pajamas and bed after dinner."

They clean up together as the toddler plays with a few Cheerios on the table before Castle pulls him up onto his hip. He doesn't fuss when they put him into the little bed, locking the railings into place with kisses goodnight and a quick bedtime story.

It's Kate who hesitates in the doorway, in the soft stream of light from the upstairs hall even as Castle tugs on her wrist.

"What?" he asks, stepping closer, his thumb brushing the back of hers as he laces their hands together.

The words are stuck in her throat when she leans back against him, tipping her head back onto his chest even while keeping her eyes on the sleeping body feet away. "Just… Thank you."

He only looks confused when she turns to tuck her nose into his neck, lips skating over his skin.

"Thank you for waiting for me. For giving me this. For -"

Castle cuts her off with two fingers to her mouth, halting the words. Only when she looks up at him, finds his eyes in the relative darkness of the baby's room, does he say four simple words.

"It was worth it."


End file.
